A TOUR of British mosques by Muslim clerics with links to ­Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi provoked fury last night.

Eleven imams from the Libyan-based World Islamic Call Society will lead prayers during the holy month of Ramadan.

But the organisation’s ties to Colonel Gaddafi have led to ­opposition to the trip, which will ­include prayer ­meetings in ­Manchester, Sheffield, Nottingham, Birmingham, Leicester, Glasgow, Cardiff and Swansea.

“If he is really interested in ­doing something positive, he should work with the community groups we already have, instead of coming over and trying to ­convert people.” The World ­Islamic Call Society, which claims its visit to Britain will bring “a message of peace and integration”, was set up in Tripoli in 1970 and is understood to be partly funded by Colonel Gaddafi.

It is regarded as a moderate grouping that does not promote violence, has worked with the United Nations and is holding inter-faith talks with the Vatican.

But a recent speech by Colonel Gaddafi has fuelled concerns about the visit.

The Libyan leader forecast that the whole of ­Europe would ­convert to Islam. He said: “This religion shall overcome all other religions ­before it. Their time has gone. It is his promise. Allah shall prevail this religion over the rest.

“There are tens of millions of Muslims in the European ­continent and the number is on the increase. The number of ­indigenous Europeans is falling drastically.

“The European continent will be converted to Islam.

“Europe will one day be a ­Muslim continent.”

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